"(M)ore than 1,700 schools, with losses of about 500 million Syrian pounds, have been devastated, besides targeting the teaching staff that has lost (dozens of) martyrs murdered by the treacherous terror(ists) wanting to take Syrian citizens back to the ages of ignorance and backwardness."

"What he has told the two senators is that he also intends to assist the opposition forces, so he is going to degrade Assad's military capacity and he is going to assist and upgrade the opposition forces with training assistance," Keane said.

Obama was stunned by Britain's parliamentary nay vote. It opted out of partnering with his attack plans. According to Keane:

"We operate side by side with the UK, and we know who our closest ally is. We certainly would much rather do this with the UK side by side. That's how the military feels. I really think the leaders of the country feel" this way.

"I think, if I may use some rich language here, the humiliating defeat the Prime Minister suffered in Parliament, I can only surmise was stunning to the President and I think it impacted on him."

"I think that's one of the motivations that introduced what I call palpable fear and one of the reasons why he is seeking political cover himself."

Congressional support appears rubber-stamp. On Tuesday, House Speaker John Boehner said he'll "support (Obama's) call to action."

French President Francois Holland said he won't intervene unilaterally. "If the (congressional) decision (is) not positive, then we would not act alone, but we would not shirk our responsibilities, by supporting the opposition in Syria in such a way that would provide a response," he said.

France has been involved since conflict began in March 2011. It's prepared to intervene directly now.

War's taken a terrible toll on ordinary Syrians. According to UNHCR:

"The war is now well into its third year, and Syria is hemorrhaging women, children and men who cross borders often with little more than the clothes on their backs."

Over two million Syrians fled the country. Another 4.25 million are internally displaced. UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres calls Syria's refugee crisis "unparalleled in recent history." It promises to get worse, not better.

A separate article discussed Washington's participation in Israel's Tuesday missile launch. Allegedly it was to test its missile defense systems. The timing is suspect. It raises disturbing questions. They're unanswered.

"Such tests are absolutely out of place as they can incite an extremely nervous reaction in the region given the current situation surrounding Syria. Probably it was a provocative move."

If it tried to intimidate Assad, it failed, he added. "Putting pressure on (him) like that will obviously not bring the desired effect."

Institute of Middle East Studies president Yevgeny Satanovky doubts what happened will change what's ongoing.

"First, the information alleging these targets were launched by Israel is hypothetical, and there are no data that could be 100 percent guaranteed."

"But even if this is so, Israel conducts missile and antimissile system tests rather often. I don't see anything new here."

"The incident only confirmed the Russian systems' effective capability to detect such launches."

Russia Today suggested a joint US/Israeli purpose perhaps was to see how quickly Moscow's able to detect missile launches.

They likely already know. Russian technology's very sophisticated. It's very much focused on what's unfolding.

It reflects Senator J. William Fulbright's sentiment. In 1966, he addressed "the arrogance of power."

He called it "the tendency of great nations to equate (it) with virtue and major responsibilities with a universal mission."

He questioned America's involvement in Vietnam. "Our handicap is well expressed in the pungent Chinese proverb," he said. "In shallow waters, dragons become the sport of shrimps."

Saigon residents burned American jeeps. They tried assaulting US soldiers. They shouted "Down with the American imperialists."

At issue, said Fulbright, isn't Washington's "deficiency of power." It's using it the wrong way. It's making things worse, not better.

If America has "a service to perform in the world," he stressed, it's setting the right example.

"In our excessive involvement in the affairs of other countries, we are not only living off our assets and denying our own people the proper enjoyment of their resources; we are also denying the world the example of a free society enjoying its freedom to the fullest."

"This is regrettable indeed for a nation that aspires to teach democracy to other nations, because, as Burke said! "Example is the school of mankind, and they will learn at no other."

John Quincy Adams said America should be "the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all (and) champion and vindicator only of her own."

"If we can bring ourselves so to act, we will have overcome the dangers of the arrogance of power," said Fulbright.

"It will involve, no doubt, the loss of certain glories, but that seems a price worth paying for the probable rewards, which are the happiness of America and the peace of the world."

"Another eyebrow-raising administration claim was that US intelligence had 'collected streams of human, signals and geospatial intelligence' that showed the regime preparing for an attack three days before the event."

The US assessment says regime personnel were in an area known to be used to 'mix chemical weapons, including sarin, and that regime forces prepared for the Aug. 21 attack by putting on gas masks."

"That claim raises two questions: Why didn't the US warn rebels about the impending attack and save hundreds of lives?"

"(W)hy did the administration keep mum about the suspicious activity when on at least one previous occasion US officials have raised an international fuss when they (claimed they) observed similar actions?"

Chemical weapons experts raise disturbing questions. So do other analysts. There's no there there to Kerry's claims.